Team relay draws Berg newcomers
12 June 2008
The innovative new relay race that looks certain to see a substantial increase in entries for this year's Isuzu Berg River canoe marathon is proving to be a major talking point in the sport.
Most leading paddlers are backing the original scheme to introduce more competitors to the tough 240 kilometre race from Paarl to the Cape West coast.
The relay race is part of a series of sweeping innovations that have been introduced for the 2008 edition of the race and it allows paddlers to enter in a group of up to three people, with each of them tackling roughly a third of each day's stage.
Recognition
Relay teams will be recognised as finishers and will all earn race medals.
The relay format is flexible, allowing one paddler to do more than one leg of a stage. However, there are also very specific rules to ensure that the relay race paddlers do not in any way interfere with the main race, including that they start behind the athletes doing the full race each day.
One of the Berg's most consistent performers, and the record holder after his victory in 2001, Graeme Solomon was full of praise for the new addition to the race. "It is a very, very good idea," he said.
"There are so many people that watch this race from the bank, but who are a little intimidated by the daunting task of doing 240 kilometres in four days," he added. "So this will serve as an ideal stepping stone to one day being able to take on the entire race."
Champion's backing
Defending women's champion Abbey Miedema has also backed the relay, which allows paddlers to take on the four-day marathon, by each paddling a manageable 20 kilometres on average each day.
Miedema, a three-time women's winner, said the relay would open doors to women paddlers in particular. "There are lots of female paddlers who are interested in doing the Isuzu Berg, but who, for a variety of reasons, cannot seriously consider doing the full race."
She also supported the notion that the relay race should fundamentally serve as a conduit to encourage paddlers to ultimately enter the full race. "It will get more girls to the startline, which can only be seen as a good thing.
"It will be fun for them to do the race together as a relay team, but I hope it serves to inspire them to one day do the full race, even if it takes a few years."
'Ultimate challenge'
Defending men's champion Hank McGregor had a slightly different view on the relay race, reflecting the race's deep seated traditions. "This is meant to be a tough race, and it will never really be a mass participation event like the Dusi or the Fish. It should be the sport's ultimate challenge, and completing the entire race should be something that every single paddler aspires to," he opined.
"Every year I sit at the prizegiving and enjoy the fact that the guy who comes last gets the same cheer as the winners when he steps up to the stage to get his medal," McGregor added.
"There is no doubt that the relay will give more paddlers a chance to experience the Isuzu Berg, and I hope it will only drive them to want to do the entire race next year."
The Isuzu Berg River Canoe marathon starts in Paarl on Wednesday, 9 July, and ends at Velddrif on Saturday, 12 July. The race will be preceded by a seeding time trial on Tuesday, 8 July.
Source: Canoeing South Africa
